I have found myself living in a country surrounded by beauty, and there’s nowhere near enough time to see everything.Last year I moved to Japan, and I was ecstatic. There was the idea of all the food, the people, the culture, and the trips. To be honest though, there were a few things that had me hesitant. This wasn’t my first time living out of the country, but it was my first time doing it alone. Well, really that was the only thing making me nervous. Every other thought in my mind was all for the move. Then I got here.

The first thing I noticed was that northern Japan was not as busy and not as chaotic as I thought, but that was because I imagined everything to be like the Tokyo area. When I say that I find northern Japan more beautiful, it’s not that the rest of Japan isn’t. There is literally beauty in almost everything here, but there’s so much more of it in the calm.

There is room to breathe and there is space to think. There are shrines to visit everywhere, and nature walks galore. You could literally do something different everyday for over a year, and you wouldn’t have to do the same thing twice.

Before Japan, I was always on the go. I would never sit still. I am not saying that I’m not still that way, but since being here I have learned to take a moment in. When I find somewhere or something that is simply breathtaking, I stop for a moment to appreciate it. This country is teaching me to appreciate the small things. It is teaching me to slow down just for a moment.

Don’t get me wrong, I still volunteer my life away, work a full time job, go to school, and try to maintain a semi normal social life, but I find time to go out and experience what this country has to offer. Living in Japan is an opportunity that many do not get to experience, and I want to take in as much as I can in the time that I have. Then again, I would like to do that anywhere that I go. I have a little less than two years left, and I plan on finding the moments that will last a lifetime.
Have a good one!
Dom